How N.J. brothers found lost Rembrandt worth $1M under a ping-pong table

When three brothers from Teaneck approached auctioneer John Nye about selling off a collection of old family possessions, Nye thought the silver tea set would fetch more than the cracked and faded 9-inch painting.

“The varnish had discolored tremendously,” said the auctioneer, who heads Nye & Company Auctioneers in Bloomfield. “It was crackled and there were (paint) losses. The painting was dark and the monogram in the upper right corner wasn’t visible.”

Ned, Roger and Steven Landau inherited silver, china and the painting when their mother died in 2010. She had inherited the items years earlier.